Charlie Adam hailed his Fleetwood players after they “had to dig deep” to beat Grimsby 1-0.
The Cod Army got three points on the board thanks to Mark Helm’s goal in the 18th minute, surviving an early onslaught but running out deserving winners to make the best possible start to life back in League Two.
“I’m delighted with the three points,” said Adam. “The guys have worked hard in the last seven or eight weeks and to get that reward in terms of three points is pleasing.
“It wasn’t pretty at times, we had to dig deep and put our bodies on the line but it’s three points and that’s something we didn’t have enough of last year.
“It’s a good start to the season but there were real positives in terms of players coming in and how we’re trying to play and do things. It’s going to be a tough season so we’re happy we managed to get a good win.
“It was so important to get off to a good start because there is a feelgood factor. Football clubs change in terms of us coming down a division and losing a lot of loan players and people leaving.
“We’ve had to bring in new ideas within the team and they’ve gelled with those that were already here. The lads have been magnificent and ultimately that gets us off to a good start.”
Grimsby boss David Artell felt his side did enough to take some reward from the game but rued a lack of clinical finishing.
The visitors started well and, had they taken one of two excellent chances in the first couple of minutes, would surely have had a far more enjoyable afternoon.
“I thought we should have been 3-2 up at half-time,” Artell said. “We got some unbelievable chances, two in the first five minutes. Obviously the first goal tends to be crucial, it certainly was, and we’ve huffed and puffed in the second half.
“We had a chance for Denver (Hume) and he’s tried to pull it back for someone to score when he was probably better shooting. And maybe that sort of epitomised the afternoon, poor decisions when it really matters in the final third. We’ve got to be much more ruthless.
“We created enough to win the game, which is pleasing. We just didn’t make the right decisions, ultimately, and it costs you.
“I thought the fans were magnificent. I’m hoping that they’ve seen an improved team performance and that underlying performance will always stand you in good stead for results at some point – it’s not today but hopefully it will be next week.
“I was just thinking ‘take a chance, please score’, when we were fully on top for the first 20 or 25 minutes. They scored then there was obviously a long break with something that happened in the crowd (a medical emergency).
“And then after that we often puffed, without really understanding how to break their low block. You have to give them credit, they’re just sat in and defended really well, but we didn’t create enough.”
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